Others, however, with no real story to tell, rely only on song and dance to achieve their impact; in that case our fun depends entirely on the ability of the performers to sell us on the music.
 

The Little Theatre of Fall River's smashing production of that down-home toe-tapper, "Pump Boys and Dinettes," owes its success to a vibrant cast that throws itself into each musical moment with a gusto that's impossible to resist. Their talent and verve make the most of what is essentially little more than a string of musical numbers joined into a seamless whole by a sentence or two to introduce each song.
 

The show, which hit Broadway in 1981 and has been a standard in small theater repertoires since then, assembles a cast of six "pump boys" who work at a filling station near the "Cupp Sisters Diner," run by Prudie and Rhetta Cupp, the "dinettes." These are the sort of good-hearted country folks we've seen before -- the men like to fish and drink beer, the women work hard, offer a menu that's "the roadmap to your heart," but can't seem to find the right men.
 

The musical numbers, which are really vignettes, describe different aspects of life on Highway 57, "somewhere between Frog Level and Smyrna." Although one of the songs is a waltz and a couple of others are rock tunes, most are clearly country-western in flavor and vary from the in-your-face "Be Good or Be Gone" to the wistful "Closing Time."
 

In this rousing production, it's especially the women, Laura Donovan as Rhetta and Veronique Sylvia as Prudie, who make us wish we could stop for a while for "a full tank and a full belly." Ms. Donovan combines dynamic stage presence with a ringing soprano that can belt out lines like "I been good too long to be done wrong." In "Vacation,"set to gospel rhythms, Rhetta pleads for some free time but once again in a winning way that lets us see how humdrum and hard her life is.
 

Ms. Sylvia, like Ms. Donovan, does a fine job of crafting a quasi three-dimensional character out of a set of familiar yearnings. In "The Best Man" she uses her clear, sweet voice and strong acting to lament the one that got away ("you're the best man ... I never had"). In the bluesy and sexy "Tips," the women join forces to let us know what that "20 percent" means to a waitress, and use facial expression and body language to back up their strong vocals.
 

The dinettes team up again in "Sisters," a nostalgic look at their childhood ("could we ever be children again?"), one of a trio of slower, quieter tunes that are meant to provide "Pump Boys and Dinettes" with some depth. Roger Belanger (Eddie) uses his nicely controlled bass voice in the a cappella "Fisherman's Lament," and David Faria (Jackson) is entirely captivating in his heartfelt "Mamaw," a wistful memory of his grandmother and "the love she gave us." His pleasing tenor and affecting persona convince us that there was "a change in the light" when she died. Dennis Robinson (L.M.), the show's musical director, plays a mean piano and sings a nicely-written ode about "The Night Dolly Parton Was Almost Mine."
 

"Pump Boys and Dinettes" is held together, in part, by John Ashley, as Jim, the pump boy who offers most of the brief introductions to the songs, ad libs with ease, and plays electric guitar, banjo, and harmonica.
 

Ashley does a fun turn in "Farmer Tan," when, adored by the two gals, he sings, "every girl wants a man with a farmer tan."
 

Ron Robinson, who directed the show (and also did the realistic and engaging set), makes nice use of the long, narrow stage at the Little Theatre's Firebarn, although the men tend toward the static, planting their feet and then singing straight ahead, as if in a concert. Then, too, the choice to mike the cast -- probably a necessity with the electric guitars and bass --renders some of the singing a bit tinny.
 

Taken as a whole, "Pump Boys and Dinettes" describes a comforting stereotype of life in rural America, but thanks to the talents of this sextet of performers, it's a stereotype that's as charming as it is funny.
 

The show continues at the Little Theatre's Firebarn at the corner of Prospect Street and Highland Avenue, at 8 tonight through Saturday, and at 2 p.m. Sunday.
 

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This story appeared on Page C8 of The Standard-Times on January 23, 2003.